Council panel is expected to approve Harrison

Commissioner nomination would then move to full body

After nearly a month of community meet-and-greets and roll calls with the rank-and-file, acting Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison will stand before a City Council committee Wednesday to answer questions and, if things go well, see his nomination sent to the full council for consideration.

Councilman Robert Stokes, chairman of the executive appointments committee, said he expects Harrison will easily garner the three votes he needs from the five-member committee to advance his nomination. That should set up a final confirmation vote as early as Monday.

“None of my colleagues have come to me and said they have concerns about his nomination,” Stokes said Tuesday.

Harrison was offered the post of Baltimore’s top cop — and a $275,000 salary with built-in raises — by Mayor Catherine Pugh after her previous nominee backed out in January. The position opened after Pugh’s first appointment, Darryl De Sousa, resigned in May in the face of federal tax charges.

Harrison retired as the superintendent of police in his hometown of New Orleans, after nearly three decades with that department, to take the Baltimore job. He started Feb. 11 in an acting capacity, and has been working crowds in the city ever since — including at community meetings in each of Baltimore’s nine police districts.

Stokes said he plans to vote in Harrison’s favor based on Harrison’s experience and reputation in New Orleans — where Stokes traveled to talk to residents and elected officials — and his “openness” in the last several weeks in Baltimore.

“We’re just looking forward to him being confirmed, to address some of the issues here,” Stokes said.

Other members of the committee stopped short of confirming their Wednesday votes, but said they, too, have been impressed.

Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke has said she anticipates his approval not just by the committee, but by the full council. She described as “moot” a clause in his contract — approved by the Board of Estimates — that would pay him a year’s salary if the council rejects him.

Councilman Isaac “Yitzy” Schleifer said it would take some sudden, unexpected surprise for him not to vote for Harrison.

“If the vote were held today, I would vote, ‘Yes,’” he said Tuesday. “Clearly, he fits what we are looking for, and I’m extremely optimistic that he is the right candidate that we need, and at the right time, with the right experience.”

Still, Schleifer said he has questions to put to Harrison. Schleifer last month released an unscientific survey that found some officers feel they lack adequate training and are restricted by the department’s federal consent decree mandating policing reforms. Schleifer said he plans to ask Harrison how he intends to address those issues.

“Obviously, ongoing training is a longterm thing that needs to happen, but effective communication channels within the department is something that can be done by the commissioner instantly,” he said.

Members of the public will have a chance to comment on Harrison’s nomination at Wednesday’s hearing, as well.

Stokes said those who attend or sign up to speak will “respect each other’s opinions,” and be tossed out for “outbursts.” But he expects the hearing to “go pretty smooth” based on what he observed at the community meetings, he said.